Culture

CULTURE NOTES

Culture definition: features of a group of people’s way of life, passed down through generations by teachings, examples and imitation. (you will become your parents)

How do cultures develop? 10 % innovation 90 % diffusion

Examples from USA innovation

Examples from USA diffusion

How do cultures spread?

Culture moves with people (migration) and trade.

The spice trade.

The Silk Road

When people move, they take their language, religion, foods, clothing with them.

Assimilation: joining or fitting in with a larger culture. (German descendants in the USA.)

Acculturation: a culture accepting an innovation or diffusion from another culture.

Center of learning and innovation that diffuses to other regions

Culture Hearth:

Ethnocentrism: judging other cultures by the rules of your culture.

Xenophobia: fear of outsiders (limit diffusion)

Imprinting: the acquisition of information through our speech and behavior.

This is how we pass along our culture to others, especially our children.

Culture bag: helps us make decisions and influences how we react to certain situations.

What we eat, how we dress, how we speak.

Cultural Baggage: this weighs us down. Pre conceived notions and ideas (ethnocentrism.)

Culture trait: a single element that makes up a Culture Complex.

The material culture of a people includes things they construct and often leave behind

La Sagrada Familia. Construction began 1882

Non-material culture includes beliefs, practices, aesthetics. These are the values.

What members of a culture produce in their material culture reflects the beliefs and values of non-material culture.

Non-material culture reflects their beliefs and values of their material culture

Cultural landscape: (Carl Sauer) forms imposed on the landscape by the activities of humans.

New York SuburbsA “built landscape.

Built landscape.

Society: a voluntary association of individuals for common ends ; a group of people who happen to live in a geographic area

A social group

A habit is a repetitive act that a particular individual performs

Sequence occupance

Culture is unique and adaptive.

What would be important to know in Houston?

Or Borger, Texas.

How would the culture of the two places relate to “time?”

Ethnocentrism

A judgmental perspective

Look at other cultures through the lens of your culture.

Leads to ethnic and religious conflict.

Cultural Relativism

A non-judgmental perspective.

Look at other cultures through their eyes, not yours.

Hard to do, but work striving for (can’t we just all get along?

We all have our limits to cultural relativism.

Are you an ethnocentrism or a cultural relativist.

How do cultures spread?

Expansion diffusion: the number of those who know increases.

Contagious diffusion: the information moves to the nearest recipient.

Hierarchal diffusion: information moves through groups (large to small)

Relocation diffusion: information moves with migrants.

With distance decay, the likelihood of diffusion of a culture decreases as time and distance increases from the hearth.

E.H. Foulberg, et al, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

With time-space compression, the likelihood of diffusion depends on the connectedness (in communications and transportation) among places.

E.H. Foulberg, et al, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Culture defines us all.

Elements of Culture

Beliefs and Customs

What is a Faux Pas?

• From the French phrase faux pas, of the same meaning; composed of faux, “false”, and pas, “step”.

• Basically, it is a violation of accepted social rules. What could be good manners in one culture could be a faux pas in another.

Cultural Differences:Eating

• In Korean and Chinese cultures, the practice of sticking chopsticks or spoons in a bowl of rice during the meal is a no, no. This is done only during memorial services. The action reflects death or bad luck.

Cultural Differences:Eating

• In Norway, Malaysia and Singapore, it's rude to leave anything on your plate, but in Egypt, it's rude not to. If you finish a drink in Indonesia, it implies you'd like another.

Cultural Differences:Eating

• When you buy a Coke on the street in Romania, you are only buying the liquid; you actually have to stand there while drinking and then promptly return the bottle!

Cultural Differences:Eating

• In France, many chefs would be appalled if you ruined their culinary masterpieces with condiments like ketchup. So get used to your “prommes frites” without the ketchup.

Weird Laws

Singapore

It is illegal to chew gum, feed birds,spit, and not flush the toilet.

The gum law was loosened in 2004,when they started to allow Nicorette.

Gambling was made legal in 2009, and you can now legally dance on top ofbars.

Fines will run you ~$100.

Cultural Differences:Addressing someone by name

• In China, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, people relate formally, on a last-name basis.

•

In China, the last name is spoken first, followed by the "first" name. For instance, Chen Yung Po would be Mr. Chen.

People in Thailand, Fiji and Israel call one another by their first names, as they do in Iceland, where the telephone directory is alphabetized according to first name.

Cultural Differences:Eye Contact

• In American culture, direct eye contact during a conversation shows respect and intensive listening; avoiding it is a sign of nervousness or lying. But for Koreans, avoiding direct eye contact is the only acceptable way to hold a conversation. Koreans may think you’re bold, impolite or even aggressive if you are looking right at them when speaking.

Cultural Differences:Relaxation/Posture

• Whether on desks, coffee tables or just lounging on the couch, the act of putting one’s feet up may be a sign of relaxation in our culture. However, this action, especially showing the sole of the shoe to someone, is considered unclean and one of the greatest of insults in Arabic cultures.

Cultural Differences:Facial Gestures

• Chin Flick:– In Italy, it signifies

“Buzz off” or “not interested.”

– In Brazil and Paraguay, it means “I don’t know.”

Cultural Differences:Facial Gestures

• Licking your lips:– No matter how

parched your lips are in the Zimbabwe heat, never lick them while looking at someone of the opposite sex. It is considered an obscene gesture.

Your Chinese host gives you his business card. What do you do then?

Exchanging cards is a very important tradition. You should offer and accept cards with both hands. Read it and then put it away. Do not write anything on it. It should be in the native language on one side and English on the reverse.

Cultural Differences:Hand Gestures

• Fingers Circle:– Known as the

American “okay,” it is seen in Brazil and Germany as VERY vulgar and obscene.

– In Japan, it signifies “money.”

– In France, it means “zero” or “worthless.”

Cultural Differences:Hand Gestures

• When in India, don’t call someone over by pointing or wagging your finger. Instead, hold your hand out, palm down, and scoop with your fingers. You’ll have much better results.

After a long day’s travel, you are in Bulgaria. You make a great presentation and ask your Bulgarian interpreter what they think.

Before he can translate, the Bulgarian businessman starts to shake his head side to side.

What is he saying?

I can’t understand a word you are saying.

Yes, the deal sounds very interesting.

It is time to offer the customary bribe for doing business in Bulgaria.

When cutting food, what do we Americans do that Europeans consider odd?

We hold fork with the left hand, cut with the right, then switch the fork to the right hand. Europeans don’t switch the fork over.

How could the “peace sign” get you punched in the nose in London?

Careful, the reverse “peace sign” is the equivalent of flipping someone off.

Cultural Differences:Hand Gestures

• Thumbs up, like the OK symbol, is a positive symbol in American culture, but this same gesture is an offensive Iraqi insult, equivalent to using the middle finger in the Western world. Some media savvy Iraqis may understand the Western meaning of an upturned thumb as well is OK, but other Iraqis may see the gesture in its traditional sense.

Gig ‘em!